Monday, March 23, 2015

Eight Ways You're Curling Your Hair Wrong

For years, I tried to achieve the flawless, unruly curls that every model, Tumblr girl, and celebrity flaunted on my straight hair and never got close. My real understanding of curling my hair came from a talk with my friend Breanna, who showed me the basics. From there, I proceeded to meticulously search every nook and cranny of the internet to find the best methods of getting that perfect curl, and today, I'm giving you the list of my most treasured tips for curling hair.

1. Don't unwrap your hair
When I sat down with Breanna that day to figure this out, the first thing she noticed was that I was unwrapping my hair after leaving it on the iron rather than just pulling the iron out and letting the hair fall naturally. This may seem like a really elementary thing for most of you to do, but it isn't something that's usually mentioned, and I've found that many people, like me, weren't aware that there's a specific way to remove the barrel.

2. Find the right tool
I tried a curling iron, hot rollers, sleep-in rollers, braids of all kinds, and even experimented with flat iron curls before I stumbled upon my Remington Pearl curling wand, and to this day, it's the my favorite thing to curl my hair with. If you feel like you've exhausted every possibility with your styling tool, the odds are that it's not going to get you the curl you want. Keep experimenting with different methods and tools, and you're bound to find one you love.

3. Hold it properlyNever hold a curling iron or wand upright! For one thing, a curling wand is meant to be held upside-down since many of them are wider at the bottom than the top, and secondly, it's actually much simpler if you think about it. Holding it upside-down keeps the hand holding the iron out of the way, making it much easier to wrap the hair around the barrel.

4. Hairspray
Our natural instinct when spritzing our hair after styling it is to spray the hair directly. I've found that there's actually a better approach to use when curling hair. Try spraying it from beneath. Lean back slightly, letting your hair fall behind your shoulders, and spray the ends of the curls with the nozzle of the hairspray facing the ceiling. This gives your curls better staying power throughout rather than hitting just the top layer and gives it a more touchable feel since you aren't spraying the hair directly.

5. Wrap away from your face
One of the most common mistakes is curling your hair towards your face. Never do that. It looks much more natural facing away from your face, and it also prevents your hair from falling in your face as often. You can still alternate curling your hair in different directions around your head, but make sure the pieces framing your face are facing away.

6. Try wrapping it differently
Don't always wrap your hair the same way! Experiment with taking bigger or smaller sections, twisting the section before wrapping it rather than wrapping it neatly, or even try wrapping only the bottom half of the section of hair for a more natural look. You may be curling your hair exactly right, but if you aren't creating the right type of curl for you, you'll never know it!

7. Acknowledge your layers
I razor my hair, which makes it extremely difficult to curl. If I section my hair off, the top layer always ends up looking frazzled while the long sections look perfect. If you have long layers like me, try curling your short layers with the longer ones rather than sectioning your hair off. Even if it seems like the pieces are flaring off the iron, it'll curl just the right length of the layer to prevent it from looking awkward.

8. Play with your bangs
My bangs nearly reach my chin, and they are extremely stubborn. They curl like the rest of my hair, but they always end up looking unflattering to my face. I've found that I don't have to curl my bangs at all, I can just let them hang loosely, and I still get a nice look. If you feel uncomfortable having them hang that way, you can try holding it on the barrel for a shorter period of time to get more of a wave than a curl, or you could accessorize with them by pinning them back, braiding them, or just tucking them behind your ear if they're long enough.

Every girl can get a pretty curl. Sometimes it takes a little more work for some than others, but once you learn the ropes, it's a breeze! I hope these tips help you get one step closer to achieving the curl you want, and I'd love to hear your favorite tips and tricks in the comments!

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Of course! I've never had the best success using a curling iron, I've always stuck to a wand. My favorite is Remington's PEARL Ceramic Professional Curling Wand. If you have any other questions, feel free to shoot me an email at mbbamagirl@live.com!